British scientist Tim Hunt shared the 2001 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for the discovery of protein molecules that control the division of cells.Photo: AFP

A British Nobel laureate has resigned as a professor at a London university after saying women scientists should work in segregated laboratories.

Tim Hunt, 72, was reported to have told a delegates at a conference in Seoul, South Korea, on Monday: "Let me tell you about my trouble with girls. Three things happen when they are in the lab: you fall in love with them, they fall in love with you and when you criticise them, they cry."

Hunt, who won the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 2001, also told the conference he had a reputation for being a chauvinist. He apologised on Wednesday saying he was being honest and had meant his comments to be light-hearted.

"Tim Hunt has today resigned from his position as Honorary Professor with the UCL Faculty of Life Sciences, following comments he made about women in science at the World Conference of Science Journalists on 9 June," University College London said in a statement on Wednesday.

"UCL was the first university in England to admit women students on equal terms to men, and the university believes that this outcome is compatible with our commitment to gender equality."